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History of the Saxophone

Adolphe Sax, a Belgian inventor, was born in 1814. As a young child he grew up learning to make instruments in his father's shop. He studied clarinet and flute at the Brussels Conservatory. Sax, being the musician he was, became aware of the tonal disparity between the strings, winds and brasses. Adolphe Sax needed an instrument that would balance out the three sections. While Sax was trying to perfect the bass clarinet he imagined the construction of this completely new instrument. His answer was seeking a horn with a coned shape brass body, clarinet type mouthpiece and a slightly flared bell. When he combined these elements, the saxophone was born. He moved to Paris in 1842 and completed his work in 1845. The saxophone was patented in 1846.

The result of Adolphe Sax's invention was intended for military bands, which do contain saxophones, but the instrument gained popularity in the 1920's because of jazz music and its wide range of sounds and great powers of expression.

Adolphe Sax Original Saxophones

1814-1894

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